Filler strip for knock-down sectional furniture



J. E. DUTMERS I 2,962,334

Nov. 29, 1960 FILLER STRIP FOR KNOCK-DOWN SECTIONAL FURNITURE 2Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed July 8, 1958 Nov. 29, 1960 J. E. DUTMERS FILLERSTRIP FOR KNOCK-DOWN SECTIONAL FURNITURE Filed -July 8, 1958 2Sheets-Sheet 2 r w m w WM E United States Patent FILLER STRIP FORKNOCK-DOWN SECTIONAL FURNITURE James E. Dutmcrs, Grand Rapids, Mich,assignor to Oxford, Ltd., Chicago, 11]., a corporation of Illinois FiledJuly 8, 1958,.Ser. No. 747,172

2 Claims. (Cl.'312-'108) This invention relates to a filler strip forsectional furniture, and is particularly concerned with a filler stripfor use between knockdown sections in vertically superimposedrelationship.

In furniture of the type to which the present invention relates, eachsection is made by threading a rod into the underside of a top memberadjacent each corner, positioning the sides in perpendicularrelationship to the top, impaling a bottom on the rods with its topsurface en gaging the sides, and then screwing a stub leg on each rod tohold the top and bottom of the section tightly against the top andbottom edges of the sides. The underside of the top member and the topsurface of the bottom are preferably provided with grooves into whichthe top and bottom edges of the sides fit. If the sides are thick enoughthey may be provided with vertical bores and impaled on the rods.

The sections are assembled in inverse position, with the top memberlaying on a work bench or table with its underside uppermost. Eachcorner of the top member is provided with a recess which has a threadedsocket secured therein. A threaded rod is screwed into each socket. Thesides are assembled with the top member, and the bottom is then impaledon the upstanding rods. The rods project above the bottom surface of thebottom when it is impaled thereon. Stub legs are then screwed on to theuppermost portions of the rods which project above the bottom and arethreaded to receive the stub legs. The stub legs have two adjacent edgesflush with the adjacent edges of the bottom when they are tightened tohold the section is assembled relationship. When the sections are turnedright side up and one section is superimposed on another, the stub legsof the upper section rest on the top of the lower section and serve asspacers between the superimposed sections. The space between thesuperimposed sections forms an unsightly gap between the stub legs atopposite ends of the front of the sections.

It is an object of the invention to provide a filler strip for fillingthe gap between superimposed sections to impart a neat, attractiveappearance to the furniture.-

It is a further object of the invention to prevent the accumulation ofdust in an area where it is easily visible and hard to remove.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent uponreading the following specification, taken in conjunction with theaccompanying drawings, showing a preferred illustrative embodiment ofthe invention, in which: I

Fig. l is a perspective view showing a unit comprising two sections offurniture in superimposed relation with filler strips in position; 1

Fig. 2 is a perspective view showing the manner of assembling thecomponents of one section in inverted position;

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary sectional view of the top member, one sidemember and a rod in inverted position, showing how the rods are securedto the top member;

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Fig. 4 is a perspective view of a section partially assembled ininverted position;

Fig. 5 is a detail perspective view of a stub leg;

Fig. 6 is a detail perspective view of a filler strip;

Fig. 7 is an inverted perspective view of a section completelyassembled;

Fig. 8 is a fragmentary cross sectional view, taken along the line 8-8of Fig. 7; and

Fig. 9 is a rear perspective view of a furniture unit comprising twosections in superimposed relationship.

In the drawings, the reference numeral 2 indicates an upper sectionsuperimposed on a similar section 3 in Fig. 1. The sections shown in thedrawings are substantially duplicates of each other, and therefore onlyone will be described in detail, it being understood that thedescription applies to each section, except for the legs applied to thelowermost section of each unit. The sections are described hereinafterwithout reference to any door or closure for the front, since anysuitable type of door may be used in each section. The treatmentof thefront edge of the section depends on whether the front closure tobeapplied to the section is a hinged or a. sliding closure.

The section comprises a top member 4', shown in Fig. 2 in the invertedposition in which it is assembled with side walls 5 and a back wall 6.The underside of the top member is provided with three grooves 7 equallyspaced from three of the edges of the top member. The grooves are ofuniform depth, and each is wide enough to snugly re ceive the edge ofthe wall member intended to be fitted therein. When the back and sidewalls are assembled with the top member, the rear edge of each side wallabuts one end of the back wall.

An interiorly threaded socket 8 is permanently secured in each of aplurality of recesses 9 which extend partially through the top member,as indicated in Fig. 3. The sockets are preferably located adjacent eachcorner, but may be located in any desired position. A rod 16, threadedat each end, is screwed into each socket. The side walls 5 may beprovided with vertical recesses, if desired, into which the rods may bereceived. Such vertical recesses may have a depth equal to the diameterof the rod 10, or may be of less depth. If the walls 5 are of sufficientthickness, they may be provided with vertical bores in which the rodsmay be positioned. Each rod is longer than the height of the side wallsand projects beyond the edge of the side wall a distance slightlygreater than the thickness of the bottom 11 of the section.

The bottom 11 is provided with apertures 12 aligned with the rods 10upon which it is impaled. The upper surface of the bottom is providedwith grooves 13 adapted to fit on the edges of the walls 5 and 6. Asshown in Fig. 4, each rod 10 projects slightly above the bottom 11 whenthe bottom is impaled on the rods in the inverted position of thesection, with the edges of the walls 5 and 6 fitted into the grooves 7and 13. A stub leg 14 is screwed on the projecting end of each rod 10 tohold the top and bottom of the section in engagement with the walls 5and 6.

Each stub leg has a socket 15, similar to the socket 8, threadedinteriorly to fit on the projecting end of the rod 10. A vertical bore16 is provided in each stub leg in alignment with the socket 15, asshown in Fig. 8, to allow the rod 10 to project therein. The stub leg isthicker than the projecting portion of the rod, so that the rod cannotproject beyond the exposed surface of the stub leg. Each stub leg istightened against the outer surface of the bottom 11, and is then forcedinto final position with two ajacent edges flush with two adjacent edgesof the bottom 11.

The upper surface of the top member 4 must be smooth for the sake of itsappearance, and therefore the rods cannot project through the topmember. The side walls are so close to the rods that it is impossible tosecure the parts of the section together by rotating the rods, and eachstub leg must be rotated into place for the final assembling operation.Accordingly, the length of each stub leg must be less than half thedepth of the section, because the stub legs screwed on the rods adjacentthe front edge of the section must clear the stub legs adjacent the rearof the section, and vice versa. It is obvious therefore, that when anysection is turned right side up and superimposed on a similar section,the stub legs, which are of uniform thickness, serve as spacers betweenthe superimposed sections, a gap extending from one stub leg to theother will be left between the superimposed sections.

This gap is not important at the back of the unit, but is very unsightlyat the front and at the sides when the sides are visible. The appearanceof the unit is marred even more when dust accumulates in visible areasof the gap, and it is difficult to keep such surfaces clean because thegaps are comparatively shallow and extend backwardly beyond the reach ofmost cleaning implements.

The edges of stub legs 14 that are not flush with the outer edges of thebottom 11 in their final position are each provided with a notch 17.These notches are illustrated as rectangular, but it will be obviousthat they may be of any desired configuration. The notches arepreferably arranged to be in alignment with each other when assembledwith the section, but may be offset relative to each other, if desired.A filler strip 18 of the same thickness as the stub legs is providedwith projections 19 at each end shaped to fit in the notches 17. Eachfiller strip is the same length as the gap it is intended to fill. Afterthe stub legs are tightened into final position the filler strips arepositioned. The projections 19 of the filler strips fit sufficientlytightly into the notches 17 to hold the filler strips in place when thesection is turned right side up.

It will be noted that in the method of assembly described it is notnecessary to use a plurality of nails or screws, and that the four rodsare sufficient to hold each section in assembled form. The units may beshipped to the purchaser in knock-down condition and may be assembled bythe unskilled purchasers without the use of any tools. The filler stripscannot be displaced when the unit is in assembled relationship becausesuch displacement would require the stub legs at opposite ends of thefiller strip to be rotated in opposite directions. Accordingly, one stubleg would be tightened by such rotation, and such tightening isimpossible after the unit has been assembled.

Each section may be assembled in exactly the same manner, with the top,bottom, side and back walls held together by the stub legs. The fillerstrips need not be positioned until the final assembly of the unit,because if either end of the complete unit is to be positioned adjacenta wall or another unit, a filler strip will not be required at such end.When the final assembly is to be 4 made, the stub legs may be removedfrom the lowermost section and replaced by conventional legs, such asthose indicated at 20 in Figs. 1 and 9, which are also provided withsockets 15 so that they can be screwed on the rods 10 to replace thestub legs that are removed.

The back walls of each section may also be provided with theinterengaging means such as the metal strap 21 and tongue 22, shown inFig. 9, to give the unit greater stability. The tongue 22 on thelowermost section is preferably removed when the unit is finallyassembled. Although the unit shown comprises only two sections, it willbe understood that the unit is not limited to two sections, but may bebuilt to any suitable height. In the drawings, the sections are shown asbeing identical, but it will be understood that a unit may be made ofdissimilar sections.

Although I have described a preferred embodiment of my invention inconsiderable detail it will be understood that the description isintended to be illustrative, rather than restrictive, as many details ofthe structure may be modified or changed without departing from thespirit or scope of my invention. Accordingly, I do not desire to berestricted to the exact details of construction described, except aslimited by the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A furniture section having a top member, side and back walls, rodsthreaded into said top member adjacent each corner thereof, a bottomimpaled on said rods, a plurality of flat stub legs threaded on saidrods and tight ened against said bottom to secure said top member andbottom tightly against opposite edges of said side and back walls, eachof said stub legs having notches in two adjacent edges thereof, and afiller strip fitting between two of said stub legs, said filler striphaving laterally extending projections at each end fitting into thenotches of said two stub legs.

2. A furniture section comprising a top member, a bottom, back and sidewalls, a plurality of rods extending from said top member through saidbottom, fiat stub legs secured on each of said rods, each of said stublegs hav ing two adjacent edges flush with corresponding edges of saidsection and two other edges each provided with a notch, and a fillerstrip extending between two of said stub legs, said filler strip beingflush with the adjacent edge of said section and having a laterallyextending projection at each end interengaged with one of said notchesin each of said two stub legs.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS534,788 Erkenswick Feb. 26, 1895 835,508 Faust et al. Nov. 13, 19061,889,811 Richardson Dec. 6, 1932 FOREIGN PATENTS 3,955 Great Britain1915 185,352 Austria Apr. 25, 1956

